This blog documents my MBA student life at Ryerson University, Canada (2010-2012). It was an attempt to demystify the MBA experience, help understand MBA topics & encourage MBA wannabes. I have a Pre-MBA blog about B-School application process (and a few other blogs) as well. I used to blog actively in the past and interact with readers regularly, but life got very busy after my MBA. Good luck. Take care. Cheers! Gerry.

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Sunday, March 22, 2015

"Occasionally, people come along who are not content with simply moving things along. They want to take things further. Tear up the plans and start again. Then, take another brave step. They will see the future and knock down the walls to reach it. Insist the dream is possible. Overcome all indecision. And take a running jump into the uncharted. Or, by reinvention of the superficial kind, they want more. Because their goal isn't to improve on what has been done before, but to totally re-imagine it." - Etihad Airways.

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Update:
I am back in the Healthcare field again, working as a Family Physician, satisfied with life.

My MBA has been very useful to me in the Medical field. I am glad I did my MBA. I did take a financial hit when I was doing the full time MBA, and not working at that time, but it was a bold experiment that was very well worth it in the end!

1.Positioning For any company or endeavour to succeed, it has to offer to the people something new, something that will catch their eye and something that they need. Here, Narendra Modi was already a known factor, but the way he repackaged himself and sold himself to the masses in a brand new package which promised them "better days ahead". Considering the way things have been over the last 10 years, who wouldn't buy that line?

2. Social media management This election wasn't fought on the grounds, but on the social media. As part of his campaign policy, he got his party's top leaders to get on to Facebook and Twitter and get in touch with the younger generation. In fact, his social media management went to such heights that an India Today survey found that the internet had become saffron. As they say, he who gets the social media right, gets the cake.

3. TimingModi began his campaign at a time when the common man was feeling the pinch in his wallet and the bite of his ragged shoe which he had run so thin that he could count the cobblestones under his shoe-covered feet. The ad campaigns and the promotional activities that Modi undertook - Chai pe charcha, 3D hologram speeches - connected him to more people than the Congress could ever dream of. By the time the electoral campaigning ended, Modi is said to have met a whopping 234 million voters out of a total 814 million voters.

On Facebook, he had more than 13 million likes and on Twitter, he had more than 3.9 million followers.

4. Communication StrategyWith a three-month course in PR and image management backed by experts from a PR agency, Modi created some of the most resounding punchlines to back his campaign. Punchlines such as "Janta maaf nahi karegi" and "Ab ki baar Modi sarkaar" caught the imagination of the voters. The two slogans had two different targets. The first slogan was aimed at the oppressed common man who was finding it difficult to make both ends meet with the ever-rising inflation. The second was aimed at the younger generation, a generation of nearly 10 million first-time voters who had got tired of hearing about scams, scandals and what not.5. SWOT: Usage of Strength/Weakness/Opportunity/ThreatThere's nothing like a missed opportunity. Either you get the opportunity and dance on it, or you lose it forever. With the Congress lackadaisical governance at the Centre, Modi saw the opportunity coming his way a long time back and he made the required preparations for it. The Congress went on making blunders while Modi kept on learning from their mistakes and using their mistakes to his and his party's benefit.

Sunday, January 12, 2014

PRODUCING RESULTSGreat Place to Work® uses its frameworks and expertise to help leaders focus their investments on those programs, practices and methods that are most impactful by:

Focusing on high-leverage program areas. Great Place to Work analyzes the practices of more than 5,500 companies each year and has identified nine program areas that differentiate the best companies.

Multiplying the success of the benefits and investments leaders do choose to make. Many organizations that on paper have impressive programs, in practice don’t see the benefits of these investments in spite of hefty investments in those programs. Great Place to Work has found there are five underlying qualities that magnify the success of best company suites of programs: their variety, originality, all-inclusiveness, degree of human touch, and integration with the culture.

Creating a systemic, self-perpetuating cycle of workplace and business greatness. Great organizations create cultures in which everyone is inspired and has the opportunity to contribute their talents and the best of themselves. Great Place to Work has found that in the best companies, this isn’t so much a business transaction, as part of a generous cycle of gifts exchanged between members of the organization. Applying this approach is the secret to great workplaces’ long-term stability and success.

Employees believe they work for great organizations when they consistently:

TRUST the people they work for

Have PRIDE in what they do

ENJOY the people they work with

USEFUL TIPS:

Here is what you can do on any level of the company to improve things for yourself and your peers, your department, and the whole company.

Entry Level, Non-Management, or Any Employee

At this level it might seem like there's nothing you can do—or nothing you'd be allowed to do—to brighten up your workplace. That's not always the case. We discussed a few things you can do for yourself when you feel like your job sucks, but there are other things you can do with your colleagues to make things better for everyone:

Start small and talk to your manager. Before you go too far, the first thing you should do is make sure that there's something you can do without upsetting your boss, or their boss. For example, your manager may be more than happy to help you organize a potluck lunch or something, but they probably can't cordon off part of your team's work space as an impromptu lounge. They may be able to give you some flexibility to work from home, but they can't make that change for everyone in the company, or maybe even your department. Let your boss know that morale is low and you'd like to do something to bring it up. See what's possible.

Break down the walls between your colleagues. Small social activities can go a long way. It sounds corny, but when they're genuine and meaningful (and most importantly, things that everyone wants to do versus things they feel forced to do because management is asking them to do them) they can brighten up a workplace and help foster the kind of trust and collaboration that the best companies have in droves. How you do this is up to you and your office—a lot of companies have potluck lunches, but why not turn it into a chili cookoff with a prize for the best pot? Better yet, have a panel of judges—make them all regular people judging managers' recipes. At my last company, we were all gamers, so every couple of months we all brought in our rigs, set up a small LAN, and held LAN parties. It's amazing how lobbing a grenade over a wall at your CIO makes you appreciate him more.

Organize and sit down with management. We're not talking about forming a union or anything, just making sure everyone's on board with a very small set of proposals that you think your manager or department head can help you with, and then see if they're possible. Start slow with small changes that you think will make the biggest impact for everyone, whether it's a place to eat lunch in peace that isn't your desk, a potluck luncheon every month, or something else small that will help everyone warm up to each other a little more. Whatever you do though, make sure its genuine: skip the trust falls and go for the things that people actually enjoy.

If you're the type of employee that has a little pull with your boss, you've been around for a couple of years and have some friends at work, or you're just in the position to suggest something bigger than a potluck, consider some more substantive changes:

Don't forget to start small. Just because you're more senior doesn't mean that you can just jump in feet first. Again, make sure you're clear on what you can and can't do, and start with some of the smaller suggestions. They can get your feet wet, show you how much resistance you'll run into, and whether or not anyone will actually appreciate the changes you're trying to make. You may get more traction starting with something small, like asking if a supply closet can get some lights, a table, and some comfortable chairs so you can have a comfortable place to eat lunch. That'll probably fly before you get a full-on lounge. Similarly, if you can't get a sandwich counter in the office, ask if anyone would care if you asked some local food trucks to come down to the building around lunch time—if you can get your colleagues to go with you, everyone wins: your coworkers get a treat, you get delicious food, your company is suddenly more attractive ("Yeah, we have food trucks come down from time to time,"), and a local business gets valuable customers.

Suggest policies that encourage happier, more productive teams. See if your department could start a telework program, or ask if everyone can try working from home one day a week. There's been a lot of controversy about working remotely lately, but for most people and most companies, it's still a great option. Plus, it shows a lot of trust when management can say "Yes, we trust you to get your work done even if we can't see you doing it." That's huge, and its impact on individual workers can't really be minimized. If the work that your team does doesn't require you to have your butt in a seat or a physical presence in your working area for eight hours a day, it can go a long way. Telework is a great example here, but it's not the only one: starting a "bring your pet to work day" can help a lot assuming your office isn't dominated by people with allergies, for example.

Lead the charge. The key to making any place a better one is to be tenacious. You won't be able to just throw a suggestion at your manager or their manager and then walk away assuming it'll happen. You have to be willing to take the reins and do the work required. Bonus: you get to be a leader and show your commitment not just to a project, but to the company, which will go far with people who may not even be involved.

An example: at my last job, when we moved into a new building, the company built on a bistro as well—a small cold counter where pre-made sandwiches and salads, delivered every morning, were sold to employees and there were plenty of tables for everyone to sit and have lunch. We even had a pair of fountain soda machines, an iced tea brewer, and an espresso machine. Pretty sweet, but none of them would have been there if people didn't ask for them and the CEO didn't agree. Ultimately it was our receptionist and a few others who led the charge in selecting the vendors who provided the sandwiches and salads: the side benefit being that whenever they came in to show off their culinary skills, everyone in the office got to benefit with a free lunch. You don't have to be an exec to help make those necessary decisions, and since the receptionist asked us all for our opinions about the food, we all had a role in making sure the food we got was food we would enjoy.

Senior Management, Directors, Execs

If you're a real power broker in your organization, or you have the ability to influence company policy as a whole (or maybe just your own department), why not use it to make your team happier, and more attractive to new talent? After all, you will need to hire at some point, and your position will be much stronger if you can outline the ways that your team is one of the best teams in the company to work for. If they catch on, or the rest of the company takes notice, you could be responsible for something big that really does make the whole company a great place to work.

Chat with HR about the changes you'd like to make. You're not in this alone, and your HR department may be able to lend you some help when it comes to making the changes you'd like to make. Whether you want to give some people on your team the option of telecommuting, or you'd like to give your team a lunch area, you never know—instead of just turning a spare closet into a lounge, see if there are any empty spaces in the building that everyone could use, not just your department. Turn a conference room into an Xbox or Wii room for an hour or two every Friday. Also, if you're planning anything after hours, make sure you're not running afoul of any company policies or regulations around overtime or employee hours in the process.

Don't force your team, let it happen naturally. If there's anything most employees have, it's a finely tuned BS detector. They know when you're doing something because you want to "improve morale and make the department more fun" versus you genuinely want them to be happier and have a good time. Err on the side of the latter, and don't judge your team if participation is low at the outset. If morale is low, you'll have a hard time getting people to stay late for a poker night when all they want to do is go home. Just make sure you get a few people and start building a core group that really does enjoy the activity you've planned. It'll grow organically from there as long as the doors are open and you invite people on a no-stress basis.

Shamelessly borrow policies from the best. Some of the perks and policies that make other companies a great place to work are actually surprisingly easy to implement. Granted, they'll differ based on the corporate culture you have and the type of work that you do (if you're a director in a shipping company, for example, the benefits at a tech company may not be work for you) but network with other directors at other companies. See what makes their teams successful and how they're handling the challenges of a team that's interested only in their paychecks. Make no mistake, some people will only ever be interested in their paycheck, but you all have to see each other for 40+ hours a week—the least you can all do is enjoy the time you spend together. Get in touch with other companies and managers that understand that and agree with you and see how they made it all work. Not only do you have the benefit of networking, you'll get some valuable insight you can bring back with you.

Build a better working environment from the inside out.Remember, Great Places to Work says that the best places don't just have a laundry list of perks, there's actually a sense of mutual trust and respect among employees, managers, and directors. It can be difficult to foster, and in many cases your HR department can help, but in the end you're the one who knows and leads your team. Treating your employees with fairness and respect, trusting them to do their jobs and evaluating them fairly on their performance, and encouraging them to help and work with one another will all go much further than speedy new computers and free lunches (although all of those things help too!)

Every Great Place to Work Has to Start Somewhere

Let's be honest: It's easier to just quit and find a company that has the perks that you like, or keep searching until you find a corporate culture where you really fit in than it is to actually make these small changes and try to improve your working conditions from the inside. It's why so many of us just give up when things start sucking and start looking for a new job.

Unfortunately, jobs are scarce these days in every industry, and everyone knows it. Sometimes it's better to put in a little effort to keep the one you have, and starting off small and slow like this is a great way to make the kinds of changes that will ultimately make your company not just better for you, but more attractive to other great talent. You need to be willing to stick to your guns, lead the charge, and go out on a limb to make the time you spend at work a little better for everyone. After all, you spend at least 40 hours a week (and many of you said you spend more than that) at the office. It should at least be an enriching experience.

The defacto gold star standard for delivering products and/or services within a projected timeframe. Derived from the originalStar Trek series wherein Lt. Cmdr. Montgomery 'Scotty' Scott consistently made the seemingly impossible happen just in time to save the crew of the Enterprise from disaster.

The premise is simple: 1) Calculate average required time for completion of given task. 2) Depending on importance of task, add 25-50% additional time to original estimate. 3) Report and commit to inflated time estimate with superiors, clients, etc. 4) Under optimal conditions the task is completed closer to the original time estimate vs. the inflated delivery time expected by those waiting.The following situation is a simulation of the Scotty Principle in practice.

Kirk: "The ship seems sluggish today. When was the last time you did a tune-up on the warp drive?" Scotty: "Aye, sir. She's due. Last maintenance was 56 days ago." Kirk: (light chuckle) "Well, what are you waiting for? An ambush from cloaked Romulans?" Scotty: "I'll need to check how much dilithium we have in supply, but she'll be better than new in no time." Kirk: "And that will be...?" Scotty: "Six hours." --- four hours later --- Scotty: "All done, sir. Care to test her out?" --- Enterprise taken rapidly to warp 3, does a few doughnuts, comes to a smooth stop --- Kirk: "Scotty, there's no finer engineer in this quadrant!"

Apart from all the good ones, there are other types of colleagues / fellow classmates, potentially:

The Sneaky Underminer: A person who sees you as a threat - who feels insecure or jealous, tries to put you down

The Deadline Misser: A person who is always late at submitting work, and keeps giving excuses

The Saboteur: A person who lies, who over-promises and under-delivers, people who brag, but their stories never add up

The Chronic Complainer: A person who is a whiner, fault finder, blame-fixer, a negative person who keeps saying "this will not work" / "we already tried that", these are killjoys

The Overshadower: An overachiever who always tries to on-up on you - but in reality, the person may be insecure or lack in self-confidence

The Slacker: A person who gets work done by others by playing dumb and seeking help / assistance all the time. They may not be dumb in reality, but may only be playing dumb

The Kiss-Up: A person who uses compliments to build relationships, but may not provide honest information / feedback --> Instead, people should provide opinions that are respected, whether they are accepted or not

The Leap-Before-You-Looker: A high energy multi-tasking colleague whose work may or my not be 100% perfect, who may not plan very well

The Drama-Queen: A colleague who over-reacts and exaggerates

The Lurker: A colleague who keeps hovering around you

For details, please read the full article at the link above.

Some solutions for these problems:

Improve conversation skills

Involve in small talk

Use ice breakers

Make people be early to complete assignments - by using small rewards

Keep correspondence in writing when possible - document as many things as you can, so that there is no confusion or misinterpretation, and there is also evidence available when you need it

Be optimistic - do not let a killjoy break the team spirit

Do not let anyone overshadow you - claim credit for your own work, and enjoy your successes

Do not always cover up anyone's laziness - let the slacker fall flat on his face, if he is not working hard

Forge real relationships, and encourage real, honest feedback

Collaborate with people who tend to miss deadlines or not follow up on work assigned / who fizzle out after the initial energy burst

Do fact checking - do not take anyone's opinions on face value

Be low-key when necessary

Do not get too personal or too gossipy with colleagues - stay professional - too much talk can kill productivity

This is a MUST READ article!!! You MUST know what skills are in demand. Forget the UTTERLY STUPID ADVICE "Follow your Passions" - BullShit! --> Follow the MARKET. Keep track of the skills in demand. Align yourself to the market demands. And you will survive. Stay isolated in a bubble, and you will die (professionally).

Social Media (Don't believe / trust the idiots who say that this is a dying profession - this WILL be in demand, as corporations / organizations seek to improve engagement with the public / external stakeholders)

HTML (Knowing HTML is the equal of having pen and paper to write in the old times - Online presence is vital, these days)

We have all heard the saying "Work smart, not hard". But is there a substitute for hard work? Perhaps if you have good / special genes, but in general, it takes humans a lot of hard work to become good at learning. Of course, there may be ways to shorten to learning curve, but hard work has to be involved. That is how the human brain learns - by forming associations and learning by repetition.

I came across the term "10,000 hour rule" recently. Check out the links above. This is what it says:

It takes about 10,000 hours of dedicated practice to become a master at something.

Perhaps that is why experience is valued so much. Now, this rule is not written in stone, but this is something to think about.

Canadians’ debt loads have grown 21 per cent in the past year, and more consumers are running into the red, according to Royal Bank’s debt poll. Just 24 per cent of Canadians say they are debt-free, compared to 26 per cent in 2012. And those who are in debt have increased their non-mortgage burdens to $15,920 from $13,141 in the same time frame, RBC’s survey found. That’s an extra $2,779 over the past year compared to growth of just $83 in the year prior. Canadians are taking advantage of the era of super low interest rates to finance more borrowing, a move the government has vocally discouraged. Debt loads have skyrocketed in the years since the 2008-2009 recession, after the government dropped borrowing rates to near zero in order to stimulate consumer activity, the housing market and the economy.

Is this high debt load a good thing? I don't think so. Not if they have not been invested into appreciating assets, or capital investments with long term gains and cash flows. If people are simply spending on depreciating assets and consumer goods, this is the formation of another debt bubble. If there are multiple defaults in the future, there could be another recession, eh?

More millionaires have degrees in engineering than any other subject, according to a new study from WealthInsight. As reported by the New Statesman, the study highlights the 10 most popular degrees that millionaires around the world hold, both for undergraduate and graduate studies. While most of the subjects listed are "obvious," they note, "few of these degrees turn out to be vocational — most engineering graduates, for example, are not engineers but entrepreneurs." However, when only examining graduate degrees, MBAs rise to the top of the list — 12.8% of the millionaires WealthInsight looked at have one.

Friday, November 1, 2013

My Huffington Post article #11. The article is about the importance of PR for organizations. Leaders have influence on a number of people. Perception becomes reality for people who do not know someone personally. A leader can not be effective if he does not know how to manage communications and PR. If they can not manage it by themselves, they should hire professionals to do the job for them.

There is a need for equal employment opportunity rights for all Canadians, especially the under-represented segments like younger Canadians, new graduates and internationally educated professionals, in the healthcare sector in Canada. Right now, the recruiting is not fair, and does not represent all Canadians.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

The problem with employment in Canada is not with universities and the students they graduate, but in how Canadian business leaders perceive and deploy the available talent.

Yes, it is true that not all students know computer programming and not all are good at quantitative skills. However, they are trainable. The problem is that businesses want ready made workers with experience -- problem is how can fresh graduates have the expertise and experience given that they just got out of schools and universities. Please read the article at the link above.

A U.S. study ranked unemployment by university degree obtained: The jobless rate for:

Information technology specialists was 14.7 per cent

Architects 12.8 per cent

Economists 10.7 per cent

Accounting 8.8 per cent

Computer science graduates 8.1 per cent

Business management 7.8 per cent.

Theatre arts graduates 6.4 per cent

Liberal arts graduates at 8.1 per cent, had the same unemployment rate as mechanical engineers, and were only marginally worse off than electrical or civil engineers at 7.6 per cent.

Post-secondary enrolment in the life sciences, engineering, computer sciences, math and the physical sciences increased every year from 1999 to 2009.

The problem, it seems, is not that there is a dearth of talent, but that business leaders expect universities to provide what only their businesses can provide — practical experience.A 2012 study reports that while there is an abundance of young engineers in Canada, employers are demanding of new hires the same experience levels as the retiring engineers they wish to replace. This is just dumb strategy and incompetent human resources management.

Frankly, business leaders should stop their tiresome bleating, start hiring smart young people who have shown their ability to learn, and begin mentoring the talent that will empower their companies to compete in the increasingly competitive global marketplace for decades to come.

It is time for businesses to STOP BLAMING STUDENTS AND UNIVERSITIES, AND START DOING THEIR DUE DILIGENCE -- GIVE BRIGHT YOUNG PEOPLE A CHANCE to work and succeed.

Bank of Canada lowered the anticipated growth path for the economy, shaving the projected pace of expansion for the rest of 2013, for 2014 and for 2015. The bank opened the door to interest rate cuts. Now, how is this going to affect the job market in Canada, and especially, the employment rates for the young generation?

Mental blocks may prevent you from reaching your goals. Prepare yourself by having conviction and persistence. When you are truly free within yourself to reach your goal then you will find all the answers that you will need. The right people, places, events and ideas will all show up as you need them.

You are the student –• You will not hear it until you are ready to listen• You will not see until you are ready to look• You will not find until you are ready to seek

The Teacher will appear when you are ready; that Teacher may be found in any number of forms. The Teacher may be in the form of an old book, a mentor, a DVD, an old quote that you now hear and understand better than ever before. If you cannot find the lesson that you need, try rereading a self help / personal development book you read some time ago, a book that you think you know. Read it again, more open minded to what it could teach you and you may be surprised what you will find.

No one can do it all by them self, without the help and advice of others we will not get far, but the help and advice we need will not come from fools who cannot keep their own house in order. You are the student; get ready, then find a suitable Teacher to help you, with the knowledge and experience needed to point you in the right direction. Set your mind and the answers you will find.

Be a lifelong learner. Be a student for life and a student of life. When the student is ready, the master will appear!

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DISCLAIMER

This is a personal blog. It contains my opinions. This is fun blog, meant to entertain. I make no claims of accuracy, completeness, or official representation. Some content was written by me and some re-posted with original links and references. Email me for queries / clarifications.